The Lawrence school board on Monday voted to have the Kansas Association of School Boards lead its search for a permanent superintendent.
School board members voted 6-0 to approve a contract for an amount not to exceed $11,500 to be paid to KASB. Board member Shannon Kimball shared on Monday that she has a conflict of interest in the search firm process, so she did not participate in the vote.
Board President Kelly Jones said she’s been pleased with past collaborations with KASB. Other board members also shared their preference of KASB over a second firm they were considering Monday.
“I know that both firms would create a community engaged process based on what we requested, but I appreciated that KASB led with student voices, parent voices,” Jones said. “They mentioned speaking to communities for whom English might not be their first language, really talked about how they would engage with staff and how they know a lot of staff that are in leadership right now in our district.”
Britton Hart, assistant executive director of KASB’s leadership services, told the board Monday that he and his team will share weekly updates with the district and board and communicate transparently with the public. The search process will take around eight weeks.
The final cost of KASB’s services is not yet set. KASB charges up to $6,500 for superintendent searches for districts with fewer than 10,000 students. Since Lawrence’s enrollment is above that threshold, Hart said the association is open to negotiation.
“I will tell you that our process probably looks very similar to most other companies, but I will tell you that we have people that are invested in Kansas,” Hart said. “And we have people invested here, that we want to see you thrive, and we want to see you be successful.”
In September 2017, during the last search for a permanent superintendent, the board approved a contract with Ray & Associates not to exceed $30,000, according to meeting minutes.
The second finalist the district was considering hiring Monday, and interviewed right before KASB, was McPherson & Jacobson LLC. Board members asked both candidates the same questions.
McPherson & Jacobson, a Nebraska-based firm, requested a payment amount not to exceed $29,525 for all of its services. That could cost the district more than two times KASB’s approved contract.
Hart said KASB’s prices are much lower than other search firms, particularly with the district’s existing membership. The association assisted the district in finding interim Superintendent Jeanice Swift as a candidate, at no additional cost.
Board Vice President GR Gordon-Ross said he appreciates that KASB is a familiar partner that has connections inside and outside of Kansas.
“I think during the summer with the interim search, they proved invaluable,” Gordon-Ross said. “We’re also working with a known entity. We’ve worked with McPherson before, but that was back in 2015. We’ve worked with KASB much more recently for this process.”
Swift is contracted to serve as interim superintendent through the 2024-25 school year. According to a tentative timeline the board is working with, KASB and an ad hoc committee will collaborate through March to find the permanent superintendent, who will begin next year, 2025-26.
Hart said the district and board will primarily be working with himself and Michelle Hubbard, field specialist in KASB’s leadership services, in addition to other KASB staff.
KASB uses five phases in superintendent searches. The process includes vetting and interview steps in addition to community meetings and surveys. He said he’s observed that equity work is a strength of the district and that he considers Lawrence unique to most districts in Kansas because it has two standard high schools.
“I think understanding the importance of equity — the understanding and importance that every student has an opportunity to learn and be successful — and the opportunity that this is a district that thrives on innovation and success, I think is going to be something that you’re going to want to identify the right people that are equipped to do that,” Hart said.
The search will be national. KASB will do background checks as part of vetting candidates. They will offer recommendations on a competitive salary and benefits package, considering the candidate pool and other factors.
Reminders about community events
• High school boundary public input sessions postponed: Two community meetings about high school boundaries, originally scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday this week, have been postponed.
The Boundary Advisory Committee is charged this year with creating a boundary proposal for the district that’s meant to balance enrollment more evenly between Lawrence and Free State high schools. Committee members decided they needed more data before presenting their ideas and getting feedback from the community.
The meetings will likely be rescheduled to early January.
• Fall engagement with the interim superintendent: Swift is participating in two more meetings as part of her plan to engage with the community this fall.
The upcoming meetings are scheduled for 6 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 12 at Southwest Middle School, 2511 Inverness Drive, and 6 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 19 at West Middle School, 2700 Harvard Road. Attendance is free.
The district announced it is offering free child care for children ages 3 to 7 during the meetings. Deputy Superintendent Larry Englebrick said on Monday that families who are interested in those services should email Kelly Welch, Lawrence College & Career Center educator, at kelly.welch@usd497.org.
An online survey is available at usd497.org/Superintendent through Nov. 22.
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Maya Hodison (she/her), equity reporter, can be reached at mhodison@lawrencekstimes.com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.
